What does a woman want? Sigmund Freud may have pondered that question for decades without ever coming up with a satisfactory answer, but here at Home Magazine, we have a pretty good idea, at least when it comes to houses. How did we figure it out? Simple: We went to the source.

With our project partner, Builder magazine, we assembled a focus group of 35- to 50-year-old women who told us about all the qualities they desire most in a residence. Certain phrases kept cropping up: family-friendly, beautiful yet informal, high-tech but comfortable. One word we heard again and again: livable. We gave the resulting wish list to our own dream team: builder Chris Stuhmer, of the Las Vegas based Christopher Homes; architect Mark Scheurer, of Newport Beach, California; interior designer Chris Johnson, president of Design Tec, in Newport Beach; and landscape architect Paul Haden of The Collaborative West, also in Newport Beach, and told them to make these women's dream house a reality.

The small formal dining room features a Directoire dining table and chairs by Stickley and a fireplace by Heatilator.

The result, soon to be on view in Las Vegas, is a show house in the best sense of that term: It shows the people who tour it a host of ideas and solutions that are eminently adaptable to their own more modest homes. While it is undeniably lavish, with state-of-the-art products and technology (all of which are "off-the-shelf" and available to any builder in the United States) throughout its 10,000 square feet of living space, the house nevertheless radiates intimacy and warmth. In both form and content, it is remarkably in tune with the lifestyle of the modern American family, striking a note that architect Scheurer characterizes as "contemporary, wrapped in tradition."

The exterior embodies that description perfectly: Composed of five distinct wings clustered around a central courtyard and ranging in height from one to three stories, the house does not conform to a single definable style but is instead a blend of several. There are three different finishes on its surface-stone, brick, and stucco. The overall effect-one Scheurer intentionally sought-is that of a rambling older home to which additions have been made over time to accommodate a growing family. The wings are central to Scheurer's ingenious design and underscore its adaptability because they function as component parts that can be added, subtracted, rotated, and otherwise manipulated according to a homeowner's individual needs.

The deep blue color of the water in the disappearing-edge pool is dramatized by a deck of white fieldstone tile by Walker Zanger. The weather-resistant chaises, by Brown Jordan, are made of woven plastic strapping that resembles wicker.

Inside, the house exudes livability. The great room, for example, converts into a high-tech home theater, while retaining nooks and crannies that one associates with older homes. Like the exterior, the interior deliberately suggests a blend of influences, including Spanish, Mediterranean, and Italianate. "We were going for a timeless look. When people tour the house and can't quite put their finger on the style, I know we've done something right," says Scheurer with a laugh.

When creating the decor, designer Chris Johnson "aimed for that same mix of old and new that sets the tone of the house," she says. "Plus, we wanted to draw attention to the wonderful richness of the textures throughout-the stone and brick walls, the high, vaulted ceilings (many with exposed beams), and the incredible variety of tiled flooring surfaces." Johnson took a practical approach, striving both to make better use of space that is often underused in a house (hence a home theater in the living room rather than stuck down in the basement where few family members venture) and to fulfill the wish list of the focus group, which included a "wellness center" to exercise and have a massage, and a home office next to the kitchen that functions as a kind of "command central" for the female head of the household.

Keeping with its emphasis on informality, the true heart of this home, the place where its inhabitants gather to spend time together, is the great room, which, at 27 feet long and 23 feet wide, more than lives up to its name. Indeed, it is really three spaces that flow into one another, starting with the spacious working kitchen that opens onto an informal dining area (which, significantly, is far larger than the formal dining room) and the living room, which is anchored by an open brick fireplace set into high-ceilinged walls of rough-hewn stone. To one side of the fireplace is an imposing antique-looking wooden cabinet that, when opened, reveals a very new-looking 50-inch Samsung plasma-screen TV.

"The theory behind placing these three spaces together was to reflect the way people actually live," says Johnson. The question we asked ourselves before we started this project, says Johnson, "was 'How would I use this house if I lived here?'" The answer, is: with great pleasure.

To Be Continued: Look for more on our Las Vegas Dream House in the "Home Tech" section of Home Magazine Online, and in Showhouse Kitchens and Baths, in the April Issue of Home Magazine. The Dream House will be open for public tours starting Monday, January 27, 2003, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Monday through Saturday, and 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Sunday. For directions, log onto christopherhomes.com, click on "Neighborhoods," and then on "The Enclaves at Southern Highlands."